In a homily to hundreds of thousands at an outdoor Mass packing Philadelphia’s iconic Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Francis said that Jesus’ disciples were also afraid of new things — but that Jesus broke down all barriers to allow the Spirit to do its work.
“Jesus encountered hostility from people who did not accept what he said and did,” the pope told the crowds, many of whom had waited for long hours to participate in the last of his three public Masses while in the U.S.
“For them, his openness to the honest and sincere faith of many men and women who were not part of God’s chosen people seemed intolerable,” said the pontiff.
“The disciples, for their part, acted in good faith,” he said. “But the temptation to be scandalized by the freedom of God, who sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous alike, bypassing bureaucracy, officialdom and inner circles, threatens the authenticity of faith. Hence it must be vigorously rejected.”
“For Jesus, the truly ‘intolerable’ scandal consists in everything that breaks down and destroys our trust in the working of the Spirit!” said Francis.
God, the pope said, “will not be outdone in generosity and he continues to scatter seeds.”
“He scatters the seeds of his presence in our world, for ‘love consists in this, not that we have loved God but that he loved us’ first,” said the pontiff. “That love gives us a profound certainty: We are sought by God; he waits for us.”
“It is this confidence that makes disciples encourage, support and nurture the good things happening all around them,” said Francis. “To raise doubts about the working of the Spirit, to give the impression that it cannot take place in those who are not ‘part of our group,’ who are not ‘like us,’ is a dangerous temptation.”
“Not only does it block conversion to the faith; it is a perversion of faith!” he said.
What can we make of this? It seems so contrary to the Church that we have known and lived through for so long. Does he really mean it? And are any of the authorities listening to him? What are the chances that this type of Church will actually come into existence?
